Month: September 2017

2 Corinthians 12:7 A thorn was given me in the flesh… I wrote yesterday of Paul’s thorn in the flesh.  As I prepared to move on to the next passage though, I could not get that thorn out of my head.  Was Paul’s thorn a disease? Are all of our defects diseases, or is it…
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2 Corinthians 12:7-9  A thorn was given me in the flesh… to keep me from becoming conceited… I pleaded with the Lord about this… But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” I once knew a woman who was consumed by guilt over her…
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2 Corinthians 11:30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. Several months ago, a reader told me that he could see a lot of healing going on in my writing. This implied, to me, that I was writing for the purpose of recovering from past wounds.  This offended…
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2 Corinthians 11:14 …Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Why are the things that are bad for me so attractive?  Why do I desire immediate gratification when I know it will hurt later?  Though I know exercise, broccoli and prayer are good for me, what I want, is to sit on my couch,…
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2 Corinthians 10:5 …Take every thought captive to obey Christ. I must admit, I have destructive thoughts.  In the privacy of my own mind, I have impulsive, angry, lustful, prideful and hurtful thoughts. This requires no effort.  These impulses just naturally pop into my head.  Though I can learn to arrest such ideas, they are…
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2 Corinthians 9:7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. One of my wife’s love languages is acts of service, which basically means that she really appreciates it when I help around the house.  As it turns out, helping around…
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2 Corinthians 9:6 Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Years ago, I met a patient who was convinced that he had bent the laws of physics.  Overweight by a couple hundred pounds, he insisted that he did not eat anything.  He swore that he had gone…
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2 Corinthians 7:10 Godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. When I was in treatment, I came to hate the place.  I needed it, but it felt like prison to me.  Those around me, having been to prison, assured me that I was a cupcake and…
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2 Corinthians 6:14 Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. While in treatment for chemical dependency, I was taught that one of the pillars of recovery is to have a strong support group of family and friends.  I know this to be true from my own experience of but I also know it to be…
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2 Corinthians 5:20,21 We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. My self-esteem, like most people’s, is a bit of a paradox.  I am, at once, self-loathing and…
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